Our top choice for our son has become a name, that is commonly used as a first name, but it is the same as our last name.
It was something my husband suggested to me half-jokingly then it started to grow on us.
There is a Wikipedia page about people with “reduplicated” names. A local entrepreneur is named “James James” for example.
My husband thinks it will be rather distinctive and will be a name he will have to live up to, but it will be ultimately beneficial. Some of the people with “reduplicated names” in interviews in articles said their name was an advantage if you want a name people won’t forget, like if you are starting a business.
At first it seemed too silly to give my son the same first name as his last name, but by the time we found out he was a boy, it seemed to just sort of become his name. The middle name would be Simon (which has long been a favorite but my husband doesn’t like it for a first) So, his name would be…(Name) Simon (Name)
I started singing a little song to him, the name and then “Is that the baby’s name?” and it feels like he likes it. Most of our relatives are at least ok with it, my sister loves it, but my mom says “That will take some getting used to.” and my sister-in-law seems to think it’s a bad idea.
The name itself is very popular for girls currently but it was originally for boys and right now at around 200 something is still more popular for boys than it ever has been in the past. I think most people can still easily see it on a boy and we haven’t had any remarks regarding the gender of the name, just that it is the same as our last name.
On the bright side, it will be easy if there is ever a situation where the last name has to be said before the first, it will just be the same name so no confusion!
My husband said, "Imagine ten years from now, when we are talking to him about what we almost named him, he’ll say “Oh why didn’t you name me that? (Name Name). We have a unique opportunity.”
I think I do love the name now. I think I do love the name now. Thoughts?
I don’t think being named this way is any real advantage at all. Its not horrible or anything but it doesn’t appeal to me. I could imagine a [name_u]James[/name_u] [name_m]Simon[/name_m] [name_u]James[/name_u] choosing to go by JS just to have a more normal sounding name.
I’ve never really understood why people do this - you’ve already got that name within the name so why repeat it when you’ve got such a wide pool of names to choose from? I think I’d be cross with my parents if they did it If it’s the name I’m thinking of, I guess his initials would give him a ready made nickname though, so :shrug:
I love my surname… but not this much! I wouldn’t do it, personally. The surname already is his name, so I’d pick another to give him something more. You could always call him by his surname, still. I’ve known plenty of kids who’ve gone by theirs, even in school (my favorite example is a girl whose surname was [name_f]Siri[/name_f], and she went by [name_f]Siri[/name_f] when we were in middle school)!
I’m half scratching my head and thinking never in my right mind would Ineven joke about such a thing. But then the other half of me is thinking of Home Improvement’s [name_u]Wilson[/name_u] [name_u]Wilson[/name_u], [name_m]Doug[/name_m] E [name_m]Doug[/name_m] and even [name_m]Erik[/name_m] [name_m]Erikson[/name_m] who changed his last name to match his first name. So I know it’s not unheard of…… I really do wonder what growing up amongst peers would be like.
I taught a Jenn@ Jenn!ngs, and everyone thought it was cool! Maybe if it’s not a exact copy it’s cool! You could always use your maiden name or a hyphened last name.
This is a horrible idea. There are many names that are distinguished or memorable. This sounds like the parents made a mistake on the paperwork but were to lazy or self centered to fix it.
[name_f]My[/name_f] family and I laughed and laughed when [name_m]Phillip[/name_m] [name_m]Phillips[/name_m] was on American Idol. “Why would his parents do that to him??”
I’m sorry, I think this is so silly. I went to school with someone who had the same first and last name and I always thought it was ridiculous.
Idea: you can still call him by your last name, even if he has a different first name. Using the [name_u]James[/name_u] [name_u]James[/name_u] example, you could call him [name_u]James[/name_u], but give him a different first name so that he doesn’t get made fun of his whole life.
I get it. I really do! But I think it’s not a great idea. [name_f]My[/name_f] suggestion would be modifying the first somehow so they’re two distinct names, e.g. [name_m]Eric[/name_m] [name_m]Ericson[/name_m], [name_u]William[/name_u] [name_m]Williams[/name_m], [name_u]Jameson[/name_u] [name_u]James[/name_u], [name_u]Shawn[/name_u] O’Shaugnessy.
If it’s the name I’m thinking of, there isn’t a usable variant, but maybe there is and it’ll work!
The way you describe how the idea came about makes it sound like a statement more than a name. If there was a tradition or sentimental reason for making the decision I would be more willing to see the charm. But as it stands, it feels like a novelty.
I appreciate you and your husband are seeking out the positives but that doesn’t make the downsides any less probable. I’d carefully consider if this is a name story I’d enjoy if it was my own and how it may feel for my name to frequently provoke commentary. I’d also wonder whether my parent’s explanation was satisfactory.
I’d suggest looking for alternative names that you also enjoy before coming to a final decision. Right now, it doesn’t seem as though there are any other contenders. After all, there are so many other ways to choose a memorable name. For instance, using alliteration or you might find ideas here: One-of-a-Kind Baby Names Stand Out | Nameberry.
With a name like that I’d have to take his personality into consideration. I mean if he’s a funny, charismatic, social athlete I’m sure he can live up to it. If he’s bookish, shy, doesn’t like attention, etc…it might be uncomfortable for him, especially if bullies are a problem.
i would never ever do this. if you want to call him by your last name, you can totally do that and give him a different legal first name. what about simon (last name), called (last name)?
imagine, 10 years from now, if you did call him (name name) and he finds out you had other options that wouldn’t have stuck him with two of the exact same name that led to bullying and confusion for his whole life i can’t imagine someone ever wanting two of the same name unless it was a stage name or something along those lines.
I’ll be the odd man out here and say I can see the appeal. I think a guy with a fun, silly personality would love this, but someone who is shy or prone to bullying for other reasons might just add this to the list of things that they get bullied for. If he’s a popular kid then I think this could add to the personality, but if he’s not I can see it being just another negative. So I guess it depends on his personality which, unless you believe in numerology and astrology, it’s hard to know what that will be like. I do prefer a variant of the surname. For instance I’ve considered [name_m]Magnus[/name_m] because it’s the name our last name is derived from and my husband sometimes uses [name_m]Magnus[/name_m] as a screen name. Our last name starts and ends the same, but is just different enough I think that it’s not a point of teasing.
I don’t have strong feelings on it… I think it could either work really well or be awful…truly dependent on kid’s personality and how he wears it:… BUT I think in the awful case, you have the middle name to fall back on and the kid could go by that.
I think it is fine really. I don’t have a surname that this would sound good to do this with but regardless i don’t think it is my style to do this anyway. However if you like it and your name works then why not. I wonder at how it would impact future sibling names particularly brothers but I think there are plenty of examples where this has been done before and sometimes sounds distinctive as you say rather than just jokey.
Na, don’t make the first and last name too matchy. I’ve seen people go by their last name or part of their last name and I find this a better alternative.
I never watched American Idol but I looked up his name to see if it was legit and turns out he’s Phillip Phillips Jr. There’s TWO!
As someone who loves the name [name_u]Sutton[/name_u] but marrying into the last name [name_u]Sutton[/name_u], I get your dilemma, but just don’t do it. I know a [name_u]Kelly[/name_u] [name_u]Kelly[/name_u], she married into the [name_u]Kelly[/name_u] family name, and she uses her maiden name professionally and says anytime her ID gets checked she gets a giggle and it feels silly.
If it’s the name I’m thinking of, I guess his initials would give him a ready made nickname though, so :shrug:
i can’t imagine someone ever wanting two of the same name unless it was a stage name or something along those lines.